MR1® - the EP, GB and US patented DIY-friendly car lift

The MR1® is the simplest known lift for raising a car on all of its wheels inside a small low headroom garage. It can be used to work on the underside and topside of a car, and store it in a garage so narrow it is difficult to enter and exit a car. The MR1® is operated by driving a car up shallow guided ramps. These are rigidly attached to a special lifting beam and central box. A standard trolley jack is slotted into the box and used to raise and lower the lift and car. When raised, the ends of the lifting beam are supported by standard axle stands, and the trolley jack is removed, thereby providing a clear floor space for working underneath a car. The MR1® is adjusted to match the width of a car. Between one and four wheels, or pairs of wheels may be suspended. A car may be moved forward and backwards on the raised lift. Further details may be obtained at Link

Although the MR1® is intended for mainly four-wheeled vehicles, the patents also cover three-wheeled vehicles.

Financial information

Since 2012, as part of my classic car retirement hobby, I have enjoyed selling the MR1®s, but the main profits have gone to the welding shops that make them. The lifts have also been made individually, using standard steel sections, which has made them more expensive than mass produced items. Despite this and minimal advertising, at the time of writing I’ve sold 91 MR1®s. These have been bought by car enthusiasts in 14 countries, but mostly in the UK and USA